Five Times The Widow Saved The Witch
by Band-Nerd1013
Summary: And one time where The Witch saved The Widow. (A 5 plus 1 story)
1. Chapter 1: Robots

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers or anything you recognize. This is also unbeta'd so bar with me here. This is my first 5 + 1 fanfiction ever, and the first story I've published that looks like it was written by someone with the vocabulary of a 17 year old. I'd take the other stories down, but sentiment and al that junk. Anyways, I wrote this story for my favorite little friend. She's literally the Wanda to my Natasha and I hope she loves this, because if she doesn't I might cry a little bit. Oh well, Happy Reading! Leave a review if you're feeling it!**

The first time Natasha saves Wanda, they're trying to save the world.

The rag tag group of super heroes is standing in a circle, fighting off Ultron's never ending army of robots. Everyone's powers are mixing, and Natasha barely has time to breathe, much less save a girl that was originally out to kill them.

So when her green eyes lock onto the creature that had managed to get passed all of them, she should let it go. It's right behind the witch now, and there's no way Wanda will have time to stop it from descending on her. She should let it take out the girl, and then they'd have one less uncertainty to deal with.

She should, but she doesn't.

Before she even processes her actions, her guns are aimed and she's flying across the small circle of safe ground they've made. Her bullets are flying, two right through the metal that makes up its head, and a swift kick from her black boot kicks the thing far away from Wanda Maximoff. The girl looks up at her in wonder, and Natasha see's the slight curiously in her eyes. She doesn't understand why Natasha saved her, and quite frankly, even Natasha doesn't know the answer to that. So she turns, refusing to stay and listen to the girl thank her, they do have a world to save currently, and instead shouts over her shoulder.

"Try not to rip my jacket will you?" She doesn't stick close to see if the girl responds, or if she's even heard her. In the next few seconds, bullets are flying again and Natasha's mind is back into survival mode. The encounter forgotten for the moment.

Hours later, when the dust has settled the losses mourned, and the world safe once more, that she speaks to Wanda again. The girls' eyes are swollen, and the wet trails where tears rolled down her cheeks still haven't dried.

She just lost her brother, the only person who understands her, and she's offering Natasha her jacket back.

At the time, Natasha's not sure what the feeling in her body is, and she doesn't quite understand where her sudden burst of compassion comes from, but she simply shakes her head.

"I've got enough red on me every day." She smiles lightly, her hands motioning to the messy red hair that's tangled and tinted slightly black with the remains of their battle.

"Plus I never really liked that jacket anyways."

Just like that she's gone; she doesn't wait for Wanda to speak, just like last time. But she does notice that Wanda keeps the jacket, ingrains it into her uniform. She tries not to question why that makes her feel a little warm inside.


	2. Chapter 2: Nightmares

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers or anything you recognize. Happy Reading!**

The second time Natasha gets to play hero is a memory she'd like to forget.

She's sleeping; well she's supposed to be anyways. In reality she's planted herself on the small little window seat in her room, her head leaned back against the cool wall, her eyes shut firmly, to try and calm her racing mind. The dreams were getting worse, and harder to wake up from, but she would make it. Natasha Romanoff was a deadly assassin, she was trained by the KGB to fight and kill since she was little enough to remember. She refused to let her own mind do her in.

She stretched her long, nimble legs out further across the seat, her muscles protesting from the movement after being stiff for hours. Her green eyes opened slowly, and her vision was filled with scarlet. The tendrils wove through the air, and Natasha barely managed to duck as one swept over her head.

"JARVIS?" She called as she ducked and jumped and spun around beams of flowing Crimson. "What the hell is going on?"

She waited for the familiar voice to come over the speakers and talk to her, when she realized it. She wasn't in Starks tower; she was at their new training facility. JARVIS wasn't here to help her.

" _Shit."_

She ducked out of her door, noticing the hallway was filled with the same strips of power that we're currently infiltrating her room. She followed the line, flipping or sliding when needed, back to where they originated from. Wanda's room. She should've known by the color that this was Wanda and her powers.

She slipped into the room, her eyes taking note of the utter chaos within the four walls. Wanda was thrashing about in her bed, the sheets twisting up her body and trapping her like a cocoon. Her eyes were squeezed shut tightly, and red tendrils were shooting out of her body. Wanda was trapped in whatever nightmare she had found herself in, and her powers were taking control, levitating objects in the room.

"Enough is enough." Natasha mumbled as she made her way over to the younger girl. "Wanda! Wake up, you're only drea—" The second Natasha's outstretched hand touched her teammates writhing body, her head filled with pain. The flashes were coming back in little spurts.

 _With a speed quicker than the eye could see, her gun was out, aimed, and trigger squeezed. The resounding bang echoed through the air, bouncing off of every surface it could find._

She shook her head, trying to rid the visions, but only more seemed to come.

 _Ballerina practices, the time she missed a move and her punishment was to redo the routine until she got it perfect. She danced for two days straight with no food or sleep. Her first kill._

 _The poor innocent she had to shoot in front of her superiors to probe she was capable enough for the program._

 _Her operation. Her graduation ceremony. Taking away the only thing that could make something that would love her._

Natasha flailed through the red clouding her vision, her hands knocking small things off Wanda's bed side table as she searched. When her fingers found the button, she pressed it quickly, and the alarm sounded throughout the base. She prayed the noise would wake someone up before she had to witness anymore of her past. As soon as it had invaded her, the red was sucked away, and Natasha was faced with a sweaty, terrified Wanda Maximoff.

"What have I done?" Her voice was croaky, and Natasha saw the tears well up in her eyes right before they slid down her cheeks. The girl was a blubbering mess of tears and apologizes and guilt and the Russian woman couldn't take it anymore. She swept the brunette up into her arms, letting her cry into her shoulder as she murmured soft things into her hair.

The pounding of feet coming down the hall brought Natasha's head up, and her eyes swiveled to the door to see Steve standing there, out of breath. It looked like Wanda's powers had gotten all of them. She gave him a nod, letting him know she had the situation under control. He looked hesitant, but another shrill of the alarm went off and he quickly jogged off to shut the system down.

"I'm sorry, I just keep seeing it. I keep seeing him there and I can't ever wake up and I just have to stare at him." She didn't ask, but she knew they were talking about Pietro.

"It's okay; it's going to be okay Wanda." Her voice was soft, and it surprised Natasha more than it surprised Wanda.

"When I was a little girl, they used to chain us to the beds at night. Make sure we wouldn't try to escape." Her voice was steady, but her thoughts were anything but. "There was a girl who was older than me, and when one of us had gotten a rough lashing, or one of us had a breaking moment. She would sing." Natasha smiled wistfully at the memory of the little blonde girl from her childhood. "It would lull us to sleep, or simply calm our nerves. She was practically a mother to us, even if she was only two years older than me."

Natasha took a deep breath, and before she could talk herself out of it, her voice was filling the room. A soft Russian lullaby falling from her lips as she rocked the distraught girl back and forth. She sang over and over, her voice cracking at certain spots, until she felt Wanda fall asleep in her arms. She stayed there for the rest of the night too, that sweet song coming out whenever Wanda started to grow restless in her arms. When the sun rose, and she felt Wanda start to stir awake, she slipped out of the room.

Neither of them would ever talk about it.

Just like they wouldn't talk about how Natasha did the same thing, for the next two months, every time Wanda had a nightmare.


	3. Chapter 3: Mission Gone Wrong

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers or anything you recognize. Happy Reading!**

  
"What do you _mean_ she's off the grid?" Her voice is hard, and it draws the attention and fear of nearly everyone in the room.

" _Exactly_ what I said Red Riding Hood." Tony's voice snarls back at her. They're all frustrated, the tension is rising quickly and Natasha knows someone's about to explode.

"Well then fucking find her!" Her hand slaps the table hard, and she realizes that she's the one exploding. She's raging and about to rip a hole into somebody's head over this girl.

" _Gee,_ what a great idea. Why hadn't I fucking thought of it?" They're standing nose to nose now, neither backing down, until Steve has Natasha by the shoulders and he's pulling her back, distancing her from Tony.

"Everyone needs to calm down. Fighting like this isn't going to help us find Wanda."

Natasha feels her anger start to drain, but she grabs onto it tight, because she can deal with the anger. She can't deal with the other feeling that's been settling in her stomach for months. She can't think about it right now.

"The last time she checked in she was an hour outside of Tibet." Clint chimes in, pointing to a pin on the holographic map that's pulled up in front of the team. "Thirty minutes later her comm's get shut off, and her signal is headed a different direction. Fifteen minutes after that her signal drops offline around here." He's pointing to the different areas of the map, but Natasha is having a hard time focusing on anything at this point.

"So more than likely she's being held in this area." Sam points out, a circle appearing around the area they'll have to cover to find their missing teammate.

"Well what are we waiting on? Let's go find us a witch." Rhodey's voice spurs Natasha into action, and suddenly the fire is back inside of her.

"Vision's already in Tibet, since he was supposed to meet Wanda there and come back together." Her voice is strong, and she feels like a leader, even if that's Steve and Tony's jobs. "We have a large area to cover, so it's going to be faster if we split up." She offers to go by herself, but the idea is shot down by everyone. They're giving her a weird look, and Natasha feels like they know something she doesn't. She doesn't press though, just grabs Clint and heads off towards their transport. The faster they get there, the faster Wanda gets home.

The flight is quiet, and Natasha knows clients been dying to say something to her since they've landed, but she's not giving him that. She can't talk to her best friend about this right now. It's way too much for her to handle, and she knows telling Clint will only make the situation more realistic on her.

Too bad he doesn't understand that.

"Natasha." His hand grips her arm and pulls her to a stop, and she opens her mouth to protest before he's cutting her off again. "No, shut up. I'm your best friend Natasha. You think I don't know when somethings wrong with you?" Her eyes drop to the ground, scanning the rugged terrain beneath their feet. She knows there isn't a way out of this.

"We're wasting time Clint. We need to be searching for Wanda instead of just standing here." Before he can stop her she's walking again, and she knows by the sounds of footsteps behind her that he's following.

"Fine. We'll walk and talk then." She wants to groan, roll her eyes maybe, but she keeps silent.

"You know I've always been there for you Tasha, and I always will, but I can't be there for you if you won't come to me." His voice is soft, and Natasha hates how easily he gets to her. "You've been hiding. You haven't said a word about Banner ever since he left, and I might not have seen what Laura saw between you guys, but I know something was there. He left you, and you haven't dealt with it at all!"

His voice is getting louder, but Natasha refuses to respond to him, even if the frustration and worry is clear in his tone.

"If that wasn't enough to cause this talk, then how about this? Why does it seem like _every_ single time Wanda is in trouble, you lose your cool? I've seen you in life or death situations and that mask of yours has never slipped. So why does it practically shatter when she's involved?" Her heart practically stopped in her chest. Clint could not know. Her breath got caught in her throat, and she clung to what little anger she had left over from earlier to keep her grounded.

"My mask cracks around you all the time. You're looking into this too much." Her voice is breathy, and even to her own ears it sounds like she's trying to persuade herself more than him.

"I'm your best friend, it's different around me." His eyes get a strange look in them, the same one shed been getting from Steve and Sam back at the base. "Natasha—" before he can finish a huge explosion fills the air, and Natasha feels herself lifted off the ground as she flies back a few feet.

" _Son of a— Natasha wait_!"

She's already moving. She would know those tendrils of red anywhere, and they're straight up ahead. She pushes herself, her legs pounding the ground as she crosses the distance to where she can see the smoke rising. For the second time in the last ten minutes her heart stops. There's Wanda. Her brown hair fanned out around the crown of her head, and her body lying against a tree trunk. Her eyes are barely open, and the red fading from the air. She's spitting at a man towering over her, and his gun is pressed into the side of her head.

Wanda's too weak to fight it, and Natasha can tell just by looking at her. So she pulls out her own gun, and she pulls the trigger without hesitation. The bullet hits it's mark, and the man slumps over sideways, his body still. She's about to make her way towards Wanda when she hears the arrow fly past her cheek. She twirls around just in time to see three more guys advancing on her, the fourth taken down by one of Clints arrows as the man himself comes flying through the same trees Natasha just came through.

Natasha's gun gets knocked away in the scuffle and she breaks at least one guys nose and gives him a pretty good knee to his manhood before she incapacitates him. The other gets her famous thigh move, before he's down for the count as well. Her eyes go to Clint, and he nods back.

"Go check on her." Natasha doesn't need to be told twice. She crouches down in front of a barely conscious Wanda, her hands resting on the girls cheeks.

"Hey, come on now. I need you to stay awake for me Maximoff." She's patting the younger girls cheeks lightly as she checks over for injuries. The cut on her temple is trickling blood, and Natasha knows once she finds the bump that Wanda has a mild concussion. Her hands slide down slowly, checking bones for any fractures or breaks. Her left wrist is fractured for sure, and Natasha thinks Wanda might have a broken ankle.

"Damn it Maximoff. You're always so much trouble." She grumbles at the girl as she reaches down to get her, wrapping an arm around her waist to support her.

"You love trouble." Wanda's lips are pulled up in a half smirk half grimace as she tries to walk alongside the Russian beauty.

"Why else are you always saving me?"

Natasha doesn't answer, and soon Clint's on the other side helping stabilize Wanda as they report back to the team. Wanda's soon passed out in their arms, and Natasha knows she needs to be awake because of her concussion, but before she can shake the girl, Clint's voice reaches her ears.

"Hey Tasha?"

Her eyes shoot to his and she sees the understanding there, but before she can say anything, the medics are there and they're swooping Wanda out of their arms and taking her to get checked out.

"I understand now." She shut her eyes lightly as he walked away from her.

Now if only she could understand it herself.


	4. Chapter 4: Be My Fake Girlfriend

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers or anything you recognize. Happy Reading!**

  
"You know, the whole point of going out tonight was to have fun. Not to sit around in the corner and sulk all night."

She can barely see, the club lights blacking out everywhere but the dance floor, but she knows him well enough to know he's rolling his eyes at her.

"I'm not _sulking_. I just don't enjoy this kind of stuff." He's leaned back against the booth, a cold bottle in between his fingers, and Natasha slides in across from him.

"It's because you never go out and dance. No one ever come out here unless they're going to dance or hook up with somebody." She swipes the bottle from him, taking a drink before passing it back. It's not the vodka she had been drinking all night, but it would work for now.

"No offense Nat, but I really don't want to meet a girl here." He sets the bottle down in between them, making it easier to reach.

"So you're waiting for Linda from the café then?" She smiles, because she knows his answer before he even says it, and even if he never lets her set him up with girls, it's still fun to tease him.

"You know what Romanoff, why don't you stop worrying about my love life and focus on you and Wanda's."

If Natasha had a drink in her mouth she would've spit it everywhere.

"Funny Rogers. In case you haven't noticed, Wanda and I are friends, and only friends." She's gotten better in the art of denial over the last few weeks, and her voice doesn't even crack.

"Natasha, you've been staring at her all night."

"I'm just watching her to make sure she doesn't get too drunk." He raises his eyebrow at her and Natasha wants to smash her head into a brick wall. He clears his throat awkwardly.

"Natasha, you do know it's okay if you have feelings for her right? I mean, I'm not judging you, even if back in the day it was–"

"Steve, I love you, I really do, but can we _please_ not have this conversation?" Her voice is quiet, and a little strained. "Look, I'm just going to go dance okay? I'll be back later."

She's mixing into the crowd of people dancing before he can call her back over. She had been excited for this night, it was a night she desperately needed. To relax, to not think about anything other than having fun, and to wear her brand new dress.

The material clung to her skin like a glove, the black fabric stretching and hitting her in all the right places before ending high up on her thighs. The top of the dress fitted her body a little tighter than she wanted, but the stretch fabric covered her breasts, and then faded into fish net sleeves. Her red hair was curled into tight ringlets and her lips were bright red, going well with her Smokey eye shadow and black high heels. She was confident in her looks, and she always noticed all the stares she got when she went out in public like this.

Even Wanda had stared at her when she had laid eyes on the Russian woman.

The memory had Natasha smirking before she shook her head. Tonight was about not thinking, and Wanda was definitely something she needed to not think about if Steve was noticing her lingering looks. Her eyes scanned the crowd around her, but a slight bump knocked her off balance, and sent her crashing into a firm back.

"Well what's a pretty thing like you doing without a dance partner?" A husky voice filled her ears. This was it. Her distraction for the night.

"Just looking for the right one, that's all." Her lips curled up into her usual seductive smile as she pulled the guy with her to dance. Their bodies were meshing together, and his hands were gripped tightly around her waist, but before Natasha could even do anything about it another voice interrupted them.

"Natasha! Oh thank God I found you."

The red head turned; dread filling her stomach as she stared at the woman who plagued her thoughts. Wanda was dressed in a similarly tight two tone mini dress. The top half was red, with halter strap and a low cut cowl neck, Wanda had a long dangly necklace on that swung down to her belly button. The bottom of the dress was black, but as Natasha looked closer she saw the back of the dress was low cut as well, showing off more skin than she was used to seeing from the girl. Her hair was pulled up into a high, but messy, up-do and her make-up was pretty natural.

Natasha was so screwed.

She shook her head, trying to dispel her thoughts and focus on what she was saying to her. She quirked an eyebrow, opening her mouth to figure out what the hell was going on, but before she could question Wanda, another man slid up beside the trio.

"There you are! I've been looking for you all over. I left to get our drinks and then you just disappeared on me." He was a tall guy, he towered over Natasha easily, with dark shaggy hair and brown eyes. Wanda's eyes pleaded with her to help as she accepted the drink, but didn't dare drink from it. The guy had snaked his arm around Wanda's waist, digging his face into her hair as he pulled her closer.

Wanda was squirming so bad that Natasha would have felt awful to leave her there. She stepped away from her cute distraction and closer towards Wanda, her hands snaking out to grab her.

"Sorry boys, I owe my girlfriend here a dance." She tried to pull Wanda with her, but she was still tucked tightly into the strangers side.

"I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I kept her a little while longer, would you doll?" His voice was low, and Natasha had to take a deep breath to calm herself before speaking.

"I think _she_ might mind." She said grinning as she pointed at Wanda.

"Yeah, we came here together and we've barely spent a dance together so I really need to be going." The politeness in Wanda's voice put Natasha on edge, but the man still didn't relinquish his hold.

"Well if you guys haven't spent any time together it's hard to believe you're an item." The smirk on his lips drove Natasha over the edge.

"Listen buddy. This is my girlfriend and if you don't back off in the next two seconds you're going to get your face bashed in. Got it?"

Wanda's worried eyes were her first clue that her anger was truly shining through in this moment. He let go of Wanda slowly and two words were all it took to set the girl off.

" _Prove it_."

Before Natasha could deck the guy and do just that, Wanda had buried her hands deep in Natasha's hair and pulled her down for a searing kiss. The red head gripped her partners' hips tightly, reciprocating the aggressiveness put into their kiss. Natasha dos everything to remind herself this was acting, and to treat it like a mission. It was hard to do that when Wanda was scratching at her scalp like that, and the way she was pressing her body against Natasha's. By the time they both pulled back, fully satisfied with themselves, the guy had stomped away in an angry tantrum.

"Thanks for that." Wanda said breathlessly.

"Yeah, what are friends for?" Natasha cleared her throat and stepped back, trying to put a little space between them, but Wanda grabbed her hand and with a small wink she drug her to the middle of the dance floor. It took Natasha two songs to realize Wanda wasn't going to let her leave, and that they were suddenly a lot closer than they were when they started dancing. It took her two more to really let go and start enjoying herself. Soon enough the two girls were dancing and hanging all over each other without a care in the world.

It took Natasha the rest of the night to realize Wanda never apologized for kissing her


	5. Chapter 5: Assassination Attempt

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers or anything you recognize. Happy Reading!**

The heroes _never_ got the happy endings.

They could save the world, save the princess from the fiery dragon, and defeat every bad guy on the planet. They still never won.

Natasha firmly stood by this belief, because if it wasn't true none of this would be happening.

She wouldn't have to be running for her life, hiding out from the government she had protected.

They would all be together, Steve wouldn't be a fugitive, Rhodey wouldn't be partially paralyzed, Wanda wouldn't be considered a murderer, Clint and his family wouldn't have to hide behind the safety of King T'Challa's kingdom.

She wouldn't have to be _alone._

Her hair was blonde now, and she wore big green sunglasses wherever she went. She wondered what her life would be like if she had stopped Steve and Bucky, but then she remembers who she is. She was Natasha Romanoff, and no matter what side she picked, she would never hurt her friends. She simply couldn't do it anymore.

T'Challa had offered her refuge, but Natasha had refused. He had enough targets painted on Wakanda, he didn't need the traitorous spy taking up refuge within his walls. That didn't stop her from checking on her friends, from a distance of course.

"These are lovely. I'll take them please." Her green eyes were locked onto the brunette across the street. She was purchasing little sacks of tropical fruit, something she did every Tuesday.

Not that Natasha kept track.

She missed Wanda, but after everything that had happened, she wasn't sure if the feeling was reciprocated. They fought on opposite sides. They threw punches at each other, and while Clint and Steve both contacted Natasha to let her know they were still there for her, Wanda had never bothered to try.

Natasha had blown her shot, like so many times before, and that was okay.

 _It had to be_.

She was here for closure. To help her move on, because today was her last day in Wakanda, and while no one knew she was here, she didn't want to be caught on her last day. She was halfway down the busy street when she saw it. The glint of metal was one she was unfortunately familiar with.

There were three of them. Two in the back and one in the front. She stopped, preparing herself for a fight when they simply brushed right by her. She stood still for a minute before it dawned on her. They weren't here for her.

They were here for Wanda.

 _"Mother fucker."_

She tore down the street like the devil itself was on her heels. The people parted for her, staring after her like she was a mad woman. In some ways, Natasha definitely agreed with them. She was crazy, especially when it came to a certain Sokovian.

She was a few feet from the still unsuspecting girl when she saw the gun pointed straight for the two. She shoved Wanda down the same time the shot rang out. Natasha's shoulder was on fire, but she didn't have time to worry about that. She grabbed the one on her left, knocking his head into the wall twice before taking the knife strapped to his belt.

She stayed crouched as she flicked her wrist, sending the metal flying into the wrist of the one holding the gun. The weapon clattered to the ground as the man's shouts carried through the air. The crowd was in a panic, sprinting this way and that. Natasha lost sight of Wanda, but her unease was disappearing as she saw the girl lift the third assailant into the air with her magic. Natasha gripped the other man by the back of the neck, bringing her mouth down to his ear.

"Come after he again and I _will_ kill you slowly and painfully. Do I make myself clear?"

Her grip was tight, and as soon as the man nodded she brought her knee up to his nose, hearing the crunch of bone before she tossed him down onto the beaten up road. She used the mass hysteria of the crowd to slip out unnoticed. She saw Wanda looking for her, and she had no doubt the girl was suspicious. She would figure out it was Natasha soon enough.

Their eyes met across the sea of people. She mouthed a single word to Natasha, but before Wanda even took a step forward, the crowd shifted and she was gone.

Natasha couldn't get that word out of her head. It didn't make any sense. Why would she ask that of her? She couldn't. It was too much for her. She had gotten way too close to the spunky brunette, and if Natasha did what she had asked she would've broke herself trying to act indifferent towards the girl. So for once in her life, Natasha ignored Wanda's words, even if that one word tore at her resolve quicker than any torture could. Wanda only used one word, and Natasha was already falling all over herself again.

One word.

 _Stay._


	6. Chapter 6: Plus One

**Disclaimer: This is the plus one part of the story where the tables get turned around. If you've made it this far that means my story was at least decent enough to not immediately exit out of. I'll take that win. Leave a review and thank you so much for checking out my story!**

In the end, it's a rookie mistake that gets her caught. She's spent too much time in Barcelona; enough that they manage to lock in on her location and storm the premises. She could run, could fight until her body gave out. She could escape. As she slowly raises her hands in the air she realizes why she chose to stay still. She's tired. Tired of running, tired of being a fugitive. Natasha is tired of being alone.

A chuckle makes its way past the Russian's blood red lips, and she realizes she's lost. Her human side had finally broken free of the restraints that held it. She was alone, and she felt pain from that.

Her green eyes dart around the room, and she counts to fifteen. There's fifteen guns aimed at her. Fifteen bullets, ready to tear into her pale skin, enter into their respective chambers. They're ordered to shoot her on sight. She's always known that. She's never deluded herself into thinking otherwise. She watches their movements, and she knows the signal when she sees it.

 _Ready._

Her heart speeds up for a second. This isn't how she imagined leaving this god forsaken planet, but her thoughts can't stay focused on her own wellbeing. They focus on someone else's.

 _Aim._

Wanda will be okay without her, she's a strong girl. She can survive; she'll go on with her life. Deep down, Natasha knows Wanda can't handle losing anyone else in her life right now.

 _Fire._

Her eyes snap shut, because Natasha wants to leave this world seeing something she loves. She doesn't want to die staring at her white walls that will surely be speckled with her own blood in a few moments. She tenses, but the seconds go by and she doesn't feel the impact of a single bullet, much less fifteen. She heard the triggers pull, heard the release of the object that would be her demise. So why was she still standing?

Her eyes opened slowly, and found two bullets millimeters from entering her skull. The rest were in similar positions, one over her heart, the rest scattered about her body. Her eyes caught on her attackers, and that's when she realizes a very important detail. The room was covered in Crimson, and in the middle of the chaos, stood a very pissed off fugitive. Her brown locks blew around her wildly, and that stupid red jacket that originally belonged to Natasha had made an appearance in the girls' wardrobe today.

The woman was practically radiating energy, so when her voice came out low and threatening, promising violence beyond their imagination, and pulling out nightmares, Natasha wasn't surprised when fifteen people scrambled for the door at the same time. The silence between the remaining two occupants was deafening, but before Natasha could open her mouth, Wanda's magic exploded. The bullets flew away from her body, flying fifteen different directions with the same force as they had left their guns, riddling her safe house walls with bullet holes. The energy almost felt suffocating.

"What the _hell_ was that Natalia?" Wanda's voice was still low, the anger hitting every syllable as she whirled on Natasha, her eyes blazing. The Russian wasn't sure what to say, but she didn't want to get into this with Wanda, especially if the girl was using her Russian name.

"I see you're back to wearing my clothes again." The words are not the ones she wanted to say, and they're obviously not the ones Wanda wanted to hear, because suddenly there's a body right in front of her and Natasha can practically feel the anger rolling off the girl in waves big enough to rival a tsunami.

"Don't play games with me _Romanoff_."

She wants to object, wants to tell her she's not playing anything, but she keeps her mouth shut.

"After all the shit that we've went through, emotionally and physically, this is how you're going to let it end? After all the times you've saved my ass, and yeah, I know damn good and well it was you in the markets at Wakanda that day, you're just going to let them kill you? Just like that?" It's clear now Wanda wants a response out of the assassin, but Natasha knows she's not going to like her answer.

" _Just like that_."

She hears the smack before she feels it, but when the sudden pain stings her cheek and her head is suddenly sideways, Natasha knows they're both losing control on their anger.

"That was your free one Maximoff—" Natasha snarls, her lip curling as she feels the anger rush through her own body, they're both standing at their full heights now, very little distance In-between the two. "—the next one comes with retaliation." The words are far from an empty threat, and they both know it, but neither back down.

"Retaliate all you want, that doesn't change the fact that what you were about to do was so incredibly stupid, not to mention selfish—"

"News flash, I _kill people_ for a living. It's what I do. I'm cold, calculating, and I'm as deadly as they come. I don't just eliminate people, I _destroy_ them. I play with their heads; make them trust me, only to rip out their hearts and walk away. I'm as selfish as they come." She's on a roll now, and she can't stop, no matter how badly she wishes the poison would stop spewing from her lips. "Selfish is who I am, Wanda. So yeah, I was going to let them take me, because I'm selfish, and I'm tired. I'm tired of feeling like the _only_ monster in the entire world. I'm tired of running, and I'm tired of looking at myself, and realizing that _everywhere_ I go, is chaos and destruction and lies. I'm _tired_ of lying!" She's practically screaming at this point, but she's so worked up she doesn't even realize Wanda's eyes are filled with pain and empathy. "I'm tired of never knowing who I am; I'm tired of convincing myself that what we have is a friendship. I'm tired of having to fight my own emotions all the time. _You_ kissed _me_ in that club. _You_ did that, and then left _me_ to deal on my own. And I'm tired of being alone."

"Then _stop_."

She snapped her head up quickly.

"Stop lying. Stop running. No one said you had to do this on your own. I told you to stay that day. I missed you so much." Wanda's voice is quiet, and that's what stirs something inside of Natasha, Wanda isn't yelling, she isn't angry. She's being reasonable. "You could've stayed, you should've stayed. With us, with _me_."

Her voice breaks, and Natasha realizes that Wanda's been affected by their distance just as much as she has, and knowing that makes Natasha's chest ache in a way she's never felt before.

"I needed you, whether you needed me or not. You saved me from the monsters, the things that go bump in the night. You saved me from the wrongs in this world." Their eyes finally met, and Natasha felt the tension thicken in the air between them.

"Who was supposed to save me from myself?" The tension broke as suddenly as it had started, and with it came tears. Before either knew what was happening, they found themselves wrapped in each other's arms. Natasha felt Wanda hold her tight, as if she was afraid she would disappear if she ever let go. She heard her whisper soothing words into her ears, as she felt the slight wetness on her cheeks. She was crying.

" _Come home."_

Two words were all it took to break Natasha Romanoff. In one quick motion, she wrapped a hand in Wanda's chestnut locks, pulling her in quickly as she molded their lips together. It was rushed, and intense, as both girls battled for dominance over the other. It was a flurry of teeth and tongues and sloppiness. It was messy, but they both felt the need, the desire, and the love that was poured into the kiss. It was a promise. They broke the kiss as soon as their lungs started burning, but neither moved very far. Natasha had her forehead pressed against Wanda's shoulder when she remembered what led them to this moment.

"Okay." She whispered, her eyes rising to meet the woman in front of her. "Let's go home."

It would be hours later, after brief explanations to confused team mates and locked doors, neither being able to keep their hands of the other, that Natasha would remember something. Her thoughts from earlier rushing back to the forefront of her mind. She had lost to herself. She lost her heart. As her eyes flickered down to take in the warm body beside her, another realization struck her.

Never had losing felt so much like winning.


End file.
